Top 10 Tuesday — 10 Years of Reading Changes

19 Nov

I am celebrating 10 years of book blogging this month. Woo hoo! (You can find my 10 Year Blogiversary Giveaway HERE.) Over the last 10 years a lot has changed — 3 children out of the house and well into successful adulthood (through with college/grad school/law school), a new daughter-in-law, and a first grand baby on the way — some very great changes! With the increased time on my hands, my reading life took off at a greater pace and back to the pre-kid levels I once enjoyed. And book blogging has influenced my reading choices even more so.

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday theme — Changes in My Reading Life — fits in well with my month long blogiversary celebration as I reflect on all the benefits blogging has brought to my life. So here are some of the changes that have occurred in the past 10 years.

 

10 Years of Reading Changes

Reading on a schedule. Book blogging requires a good bit of organization, and reading according to a schedule keeps me from being too behind in my reading commitments.  Where once I picked up any old book that caught my fancy, I now have a list I follow pretty faithfully.

Reading new-to-me authors. I have been introduced to some great new favorite authors because I was introduced to them through blogging opportunities. Of course, this just makes the TBR pile bigger and bigger.

Reading small press and indie-published authors. One big benefit to blogging is coming into contact with authors who are independently published or from smaller houses. Again, I have new favorites I may have missed because of limited exposure. I hope my blog has introduced you to some great authors you may have missed otherwise.

No more binge-reading. In the past when I found an author I liked, I read ALL the books! I can remember reading Mindy Starns Clark’s Million Dollar Mysteries straight through. Now due to that pesky schedule, I have to wait to fit in books to read.

Less and less just because books. Again the reading schedule keeps me from reading on a whim. I am trying to allow for more gaps in the schedule to accomodate books that catch my eye and my fancy.

Reading the book first. This is one great perk to book blogging. I often receive books before release dates, making me very smug around my reading friends.  😉

Being in the know 😉 . Being in contact with authors, publicists, and publishers has increased my awareness of new books coming up in the future. It has also increased my book-bullying tendencies and my street cred with my book club. (Insert eye-rolls and raucous laughter here.)

Expanding genres. While I have always been very eclectic in my reading, I have added more books from less favored genres. Contemporary romance and Amish fiction were low on my preferred list, but because of blogging I have must-read authors from those genres now.

All the books — all the time. My reading time has increased with every book that makes its way into my house. It is not unusual for me to be reading 3 books at a time — one hard copy, one on Kindle, and one audiobook.

So there you have it — 10 years of book blogging has filled my shelves and my life with wonderful stories, authors, and experiences. I highly recommend it!

 

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17 Responses to “Top 10 Tuesday — 10 Years of Reading Changes”

  1. susiesellnergmailcom November 19, 2019 at 8:20 am #

    You’ve been an inspiration to me. Thanks so much.

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:37 pm #

      And you are always such a great encouragement! 🙂

  2. Gail Johnson November 19, 2019 at 8:24 am #

    Happy anniversary! You do a marvellous job!

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:36 pm #

      Thanks!

  3. Paula Shreckhise November 19, 2019 at 8:52 am #

    I am with you 100%. I have to plan out my schedule because I review for three publishers and numerous authors. I look far ahead for new releases, June 2020 is going to be a doozy! Why are they all released on the same date? They need to stagger them! I have read more new releases than ever this year! So much good stuff out there.
    I used to binge read, too. I read the same series!LOL.
    Happy reading! Gotta get back to mine!

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:36 pm #

      Yes you do! LOL!

      I haven’t looked that far ahead yet. A bit scared now! 😉

  4. Jaymi at OrangeCountyReaders November 19, 2019 at 9:59 am #

    I can relate to a lot of this! Especially less time to read “just -because” books. Here is my Top Ten Tuesday post.

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:35 pm #

      Thanks for sharing your TTT!

  5. kathyscottage November 19, 2019 at 10:19 am #

    Happy Blogiversary! Way to go! 🙂

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:35 pm #

      Thanks!

  6. lydiaschoch November 19, 2019 at 10:23 am #

    Reading small press and indie books is such a fun thing to do. There are a lot of hidden treasures out there.

    My TTT.

    • rbclibrary November 19, 2019 at 4:35 pm #

      Oh yes!

  7. alisbooks November 19, 2019 at 12:52 pm #

    I didn’t think about it when composing my list, but blogging definitely opened the world of indie authors to me!

  8. novelgnome November 19, 2019 at 7:03 pm #

    I agree with you about the scheduling. If you don’t stay focused, it’s really easy to get behind. Happy Blogversary!

    • rbclibrary November 20, 2019 at 10:11 am #

      Yes! And don’t throw anything new at me . . . like cooking or cleaning. LOL!

  9. Dedra @ A Book Wanderer November 20, 2019 at 12:46 pm #

    Happy Anniversary! As a new blogger, your post is so encouraging. I have 2 out of 3 kids in college now, so I too finally have time to devote to what I love. Great post!

    Here’s my TTT this week!

    • rbclibrary November 20, 2019 at 1:32 pm #

      Thanks! And have fun!!

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